Gibson launches Tak Matsumoto DC Standard Flame Top

B'z rocker bags beautiful custom model

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Check out this blue beauty

Gibson has unveiled the Tak Matsumoto DC Standard Flame Top, a Japanese market exclusive from the Custom Shop for the B'z guitarist.

Matsumoto's seventh Gibson Custom Shop model features an eye-catching flame maple top finished in Aqua Blue and an offset double cut body, and is pretty enough to make you want to jump on a plane to Japan.

Best known as the guitarist, songwriter and producer of Japanese rockers B'z, Tak Matsumoto is renowned as Asia's foremost guitarist. The duo, which includes vocalist Koshi Inaba, holds the record for consecutive #1 singles on Japan's Oricon Singles Chart, having sent a whopping 46 hits to the top since the band's formation in 1988, and is equally known for its dynamic live shows, including a sold-out North American tour in 2011. In addition, Tak has pursued a successful solo career, joined forces with artists such as Steve Vai and Jack Blades, and won a Grammy alongside Larry Carlton for Best Pop Instrumental Album for their 2010 release Take Your Pick.

The new Tak Matsumoto DC Standard Flame Top from Gibson Custom, exclusive to the Japanese market, is the latest in a line-up that includes seven other signature models for this acclaimed artist. It offers all of Tak's preferred specs and features for a modern take on the Les Paul that looks, plays, and sounds utterly superb.

This outstanding new artist model morphs the timeless tonewoods and classic components of the legendary Les Paul Standard with dual PAF-style humbucking pickups into Tak's preferred offset, double-cutaway body and crowns it with an exquisite highly figured maple top finished in stunning Standard Aqua Blue Gloss. The result is a guitar that looks as striking as it sounds, and a must-have for any player or collector who admires the work of this supremely accomplished artist.

The Tak Matsumoto DC Standard Flame Top begins with the time-tested pairing of a solid, one-piece mahogany body joined to a carved maple top. The marriage of unchambered lightweight mahogany and solid maple blends the depth, richness, sustain and cutting power that has made Les Pauls legendary for 60 years. A one-piece, quarter-sawn mahogany neck is carved to Tak's preferred profile, measuring 0.845" at the 1st fret and 0.945" at the 12th. A genuine rosewood fingerboard carries 22 medium-jumbo frets and is topped with a Corian™ nut cut on Gibson Custom's PLEK automated guitar setup system for optimum precision. Tak's unique offset double-cutaway body design provides an innovative twist on the classic formula, adding excellent playing balance and uninhibited upper-fret access to the legendary Les Paul tone, while giving the guitar the sleek contemporary look for which this artist is known.

A pair of Gibson's finest high-performance PAF-style humbucking pickups with open-top "zebra" coils takes the Tak Matsumoto DC Standard Flame Top to new sonic heights. The BurstBucker 2 in the neck position and BurstBucker 3 in the bridge are made with genuine Alnico magnets and wound with 42-AWG enamel-coated wire for classic creamy warm lead tones and punchy cutting crunch as desired. This calibrated set offers an excellent output balance, with a little more punching power in the bridge position to achieve Tak's famous scorching lead tone, while keeping the neck pickup smooth and clear. Adhering to Tak's personal preference, the pickups are wired up to a traditional three-way toggle switch and independent volume controls, with a single master tone control — the perfect marriage of simplicity and versatility.